Unforeseen Circumstances
by Shan84
Summary: Hermione Granger needed a fresh start. Theodore Nott just needed someone to pay attention. TN/HG.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: New multi-chapter story from me! This is a story I have been thinking about for a while. After thinking and thinking about it, I finally gave into the urge and started typing. Not my usual Tom/Hermione, but Theo/Hermione instead. Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy it :)**

**Surprise disclaimer, I don't own Harry Potter and will not be making money from this.**

* * *

Theodore Nott woke quickly, and grimaced at the bright sunlight which poked through his drapes. He lay there, not moving at first, till he finally decided to roll onto his back and stare at the forest green canopy above his bed. As he took in the familiar drapes and folds of the fabric, his body jolted when he finally realised it was Monday, and he had an early morning appointment at Gringotts.

"Shit," he muttered, as he checked the large clock on the bedroom wall across from him and realised that he was already running late. "Shit, shit, shit … Mippy!"

The small House Elf popped into the room. "Yes, Master?"

"Why didn't you wake me? Now I'll be late," Theo snapped as he jumped out of bed, changed out of his pyjamas, and grabbed a set of dress robes that had been laid out the night before.

"But Master, Mippy was tolds by Master Theodore not to disturb his mornings!" the Elf squeaked, it's big eyes watering at idea of his master being displeased.

Theo sighed in annoyance. He had no time to deal with the hysterics of a House Elf. "Fine. Don't worry about breakfast, and I'll probably be home late," he said and quickly dismissed the Elf.

Half an hour later, Theo found himself seated with a weak cup of tea, in front of the Goblin who had acted as a financial adviser to his family for as long as he could remember. Many of the more wealthy families had Goblins who provided wealth advice for quite a sizable extra fee.

"We have called you in, Mr Nott, because of the life sentence handed to your father, as of last week," the Goblin announced. "Now that your father is in Azkaban permanently, and is therefore incapacitated to manage Nott industries and your family vaults, you are now legally responsible for all finances, shares, and property. Do you understand?"

Theo sighed tiredly and ran a hand through his hair, effectively ruining any previous neatness. He already knew all of this, of course. "Yes."

"Excellent, sign these," the Goblin replied and promptly handed over several long sheets of parchment to sign.

Theo stared at the parchment before him as the Goblin started droning on about the responsibilities in managing this family fortune. Lists and lists of numbers … _money, money, money_.

However, taking a closer look, he didn't realise now just how much of a beating the Nott vaults had taken in the years that led to the final battle. His father had certainly put some serious Galleons into Voldemort's campaign. And what was there to show for it? Absolutely nothing. _Fuck_.

"I suggest, Mr Nott, that you begin looking at investing more of your money so you can rebuild your fortune …" the Goblin said, as his sharp eyes took in Theo's expression.

"And how would you suggest that?" Theo drawled. "Everyone is in a similar situation, and the Wizarding business world is still trying to repair itself after the war."

"Ah, yes, but the muggle business world isn't—"

"You think I want to invest my family's Galleons with _Muggles_?"

"You would be surprised at the number of families who do, Mr Nott," the Goblin replied crisply.

It wasn't that Theo was as bad as his father. The war had shown him enough on _that _lunacy. However, Theo still thought that the wizarding world was far superior compared to the plain and dirty muggle world … even if they were muggleborns or halfbloods or purebloods. At least they had magic. How muggles survived without it he would never – nor care to – understand.

"How about I book an appointment with our Muggle Business Liaison officer later this week?" the Goblin asked, interrupting his thoughts.

Theo sighed loudly. "Do I have a choice?"

"Mr Nott, I cannot force you to do anything. But if you do not change your financial ways, with the Ministry compensation laws coming into effect for all families of convicted Death Eaters, I can guarantee you won't have a knut to rub together by the time you're thirty."

"_Shit_," Theo muttered for what felt like the millionth time that day. Now he was paying for his father's poor decisions in more ways than one.

XXX

"Are you sure you girls will be fine on your own?" Jean Granger asked as she finished setting a final box down in the small cottage.

Hermione looked up from the boxes she had been tentatively looking through. "Of course, Mum. Are you sure you don't want me to Apparate you?"

Hermione's mother held up her car keys and jangled them with a happy look on her face. "Quite."

Hermione rolled her eyes and ignored Ginny's snigger in the background. "It's a perfectly safe way to—"

"I'm fine, dear," Jean cut off the impending lecture she had already heard before. "Besides, I need to run some errands before I get home."

"Alright," Hermione sighed. "Well, will I see you and Dad next weekend?"

"Of course." Her mother nodded. "Now, are you sure you will be alright here?"

"Of course," Hermione parroted her mother, causing her to click her tongue at her daughter.

Ginny stood up from in-between the boxes she was currently sorting. "Don't worry, Mrs Granger, I'll make sure Hermione's okay."

"Thank you, Ginny," Jean replied with a smile. "Well, I must be off if I ever want to get home before dark. Have fun, girls," she said as she gathered her handbag, coat, and scarf.

"We will," Hermione and Ginny chorused at the same time.

As soon as Jean had left, Ginny spun around and smiled at her friend as she pulled out a bottle of wine. "Let's celebrate," she announced.

"Celebrate? Why on earth would you want me to celebrate leaving your brother?"

"Forget I'm even related to Ron tonight, Hermione. I'm on best friend duty anyway. Besides we need to celebrate your promotion, too."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Fine," she replied and watched Ginny Accio large ceramic mugs and open the bottle of red wine. She supposed it was deserved, considering she had recently officially qualified as a trainee Healer at St Mungos.

"Classy," Hermione commented wryly as Ginny handed her a cup with a faded picture of Garfield painted on the side that had been a Christmas present when she was five.

Ginny scoffed. "They're your cups. Besides, we haven't unpacked the proper ones yet."

"True."

Ginny held up her own mug, one with English roses painted on it, and smiled. "Here's to new beginnings."

Hermione looked around the cramped cottage and sighed heavily, though there was a small smile on her face. "To new beginnings."

After both girls took generous sips of their wine they looked around the cottage thoughtfully.

"Merlin, Hermione, I still can't believe your Great Aunt gave you this place," Ginny said.

"She didn't _give_ it to me; she left it to my Mum. Mum and Dad are just letting me rent it."

"It's pretty much yours though," Ginny replied. "I mean, your Mum didn't seem too bothered about the changes you want to make."

Hermione nodded. That much was true. The Grangers didn't seem bothered at all about Hermione taking over the cottage located in the Hampshire countryside. In fact, they practically offered it on a silver platter when they found out Hermione and Ron had ended their engagement.

On the proviso that Hermione would sort the place out, as her Great Aunt Beryl had been a bit of a hoarder, her parents were letting her live here practically rent free. Although, looking at the mess she had to sort through, she thought her parents were the clever ones in all of this.

Still, the place was 'new' in a sense, as it did not bear any reminders of her relationship with Ron. Hermione internally winced when she thought of her now _ex_ fiancé. How had things turned out so horribly? Only two years ago, the war had ended and Hermione and Ron had _finally _started dating. When he had proposed six months ago, getting married only seemed like the next logical step. Well, it was, until Hermione found herself standing in the kitchen one night arguing with Ron about some stupid, small thing that she realised that she _did not want this_. At first, the thought had hit her like a sucker punch, and she had quickly pushed it away, pretending that it had never even occurred to her.

However, as the months rolled on, she found the voice becoming more and more prominent in her head. The awful thing was that she couldn't do it; she was scared of losing Ron. That was, losing Ron the friend, not Ron the fiancé. How had she not seen it earlier? They were completely unsuited to one another, not to mention the lack of passion between the sheets. She didn't get excited about _being _with Ron … What a mess she had created! And when Hermione had finally realised it, all she felt was trapped.

Ron was a good man, and deserved someone who truly loved him – not someone who had merely become too comfortable and secure in the idea of him. Breaking up with Ron was one of the hardest things she had ever done. They were still barely speaking. Hermione only hoped that one day they could put this mess behind them and be friends again.

She internally winced when she realised she was moping over it _again_. She needed to stop thinking about it. She had spent enough of the last fortnight crying over that failure.

"—the kitchen really only needs a fresh coat of paint. The cupboards still look like they are solid. What do you think about white and natural timber bench-tops? Really country, in my opinion. When are you getting the fireplace connected to St Mungos?"

Ginny's question forced Hermione to stop thinking about Ron and pay attention. "Someone from the Ministry is coming out later this week," she replied.

"The rooms don't need much either, you just need to get rid of this hideous furniture," Ginny added.

"You've got that right," Hermione replied looking around the room in distaste.

Great Aunt Beryl was a huge fan of the muggle television show Antiques Roadshow. Unfortunately, this meant that she had spent an inordinate amount of time at markets, trying to find 'precious' antiques. In the end, it was all junk, with barely anything of value found when her parents claimed the property from the old woman's last will and testament. Hermione grimaced as her attention was caught by a particularly hideous orange and brown lamp shade.

"Chin up, Hermione. Harry will be coming tomorrow too, and with three of us, we'll make a good dent in it," Ginny said.

"I hope so," Hermione replied. Because she realised that this house was exactly the change she needed.

XXX

**A/N: Sorry, the first chapter isn't a long one. Just a taste ;) Our two main characters will meet in the next chapter. Thank you for reading! **

**FYI, my characterisation of Theo is based from the small amount of information from JKR, and my own further interpretations from that. **

**Cheers,**

**Shan**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow, that was quick! Don't ask me how I managed to update so quickly, heh. Thank you to those who read and reviewed the first chapter. **

**Song inspirations: 'Porcelain' & 'Extreme Ways' - Moby**

* * *

The morning after moving into the cottage, Hermione decided to take an early morning walk through the nearby countryside before Harry and Ginny showed up to help her unpack and sort through more things.

She was south of the village when she felt it; magic that was practically buzzing in the air. She picked up her pace, natural curiosity taking over. She finally reached a turn on the small road she had been walking on, and that was when she saw it. She gasped as she took in the vast expanse of cleared land and a very, very large and imposing looking house. Actually, it wasn't a house, more a mansion.

Hermione's eyes widened as she took in the manicured lawn and hedges, as well as the mansion itself. She felt the shiver of magic become stronger as she got closer, and knew that there were some really strong wards erected around the place. Whoever lived here did not want just anyone to enter, nor muggles to know about it for that matter.

She strolled along the hedge-line for a bit until she came to some wrought-iron gates. She stood there for a while, looking at the mansion in the distance, trying to distinguish the various features of it. It was three stories, with large arched windows dotted across each level. Hermione wondered which wealthy wizarding family lived here.

After standing and staring for a few moments longer, she decided her curiosity had been sated enough and turned to head back to her own little cottage for a warm breakfast when a voice caused her to gasp and reach for her wand.

"How you managed to evade the Dark Lord for months on end I will never know …"

Hermione spun around, wand in hand, and was met by the sight of a young man leaning against the iron gates she had been looking through just moments before.

_Theodore Nott_. Of course, she remembered him from school … though it was a great wonder _how_, considering he barely made a peep of noise during their time at Hogwarts. He was the Slytherin who seemed quite happy to spend most of his time alone. She grimaced internally and worriedly chewed on her bottom lip; everyone had known that Nott's father was one of Voldemort's most loyal Death Eaters … was there cause for her to be concerned running into him then? It certainly explained the extreme muggle-repelling wards around the property.

Like anyone who hadn't seen someone for a couple of years, she noted the small physical differences from school. He was taller, she guessed at least over six foot, but still quite slim. He wasn't as skinny as he was at Hogwarts though … she recalled thinking him to be quite gangly and awkward back then – like many of the taller boys in her year. His dark brown hair was a bit longer, keeping with how many of the young wizards were currently wearing their hair these days, though it hung straight and neat just below his ears, unlike Harry and Ron's messy hair. She automatically thought that he had grown somewhat into his gangly looks. She wouldn't exactly describe him as handsome, but she supposed he was well-presented and had a certain air of assurance with the way he was standing and looking at her – though most Slytherins seemed to always appear that way. Her eyes met his – a clear, almost sky blue colour – and she frowned at the amused smirk on his face.

"Do you always sneak up on people like that, Nott?" she snapped, annoyed and embarrassed at herself for not realising he had probably been watching her.

"When people are sniffing around my property, yes."

"I was merely walking pa—"

"More like standing there, gaping like a fish."

Hermione huffed. "Well, excuse me. It's not illegal to look at someone's house."

"I never said it was."

"No, you were insinuating—"

"I was merely observing. You can stop pointing your wand at me, by the way. Do you really think me stupid enough to hex a _war hero_?" he asked, and Hermione thought he made the last words sound like something dirty.

What an exasperating prat! No wonder he never spoke in school … his personality was absolutely hideous! She decided it would be best to leave as soon as possible, preferably before she hexed the living daylights out of him.

"Well, good day to you, Nott," she finally replied to him. "I would say it's been a pleasure, but that would be a lie." She stood up straighter, pushed her shoulders back, and put her wand away. She believed he wouldn't hex her … like he said, it would be stupid of him to even try it, she thought to herself rather haughtily. So, with a flick of her hair, she turned and began walking. She hadn't even walked a couple of feet before he called out to her. She turned slightly, giving him a curious frown.

"Why are you here, Granger?" he asked in what she thought was a suspicious manner.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Why are you walking near my property?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. _Idiotic, overly suspicious Slytherins. _"I just moved to the small village up the road," she explained.

"Oh."

"Yes, _oh_. Worried I was staking you out or something?"

"Who knows with you Gryffindor types."

"Well, for your information, I was simply taking a morning walk. Now, if you'll excuse me." And with that, she turned back around and started walking again. After she had walked a couple of metres, she curiously turned again and noted he had already disappeared.

XXX

"Theodore Nott?" Ginny asked.

Hermione, Ginny and Harry were all standing in Hermione's sitting room, sorting through several large boxes they had found in the attic as she explained her early morning encounter to her friends.

"Wasn't he one of Malfoy's mates?" Harry asked as he rifled through a box and pulled out a small painting of the sea. "Keep, charity, or rubbish?" he asked holding the picture up for Hermione's inspection.

"Charity," Hermione promptly replied. "As for Nott, I don't think so … I mean, he wasn't a Crabbe and Goyle-style crony … But I guess they might have been friends."

"Wait, was he that tall, really skinny one?" Ginny asked.

Hermione nodded as she picked up a broken umbrella from her box, frowned, and then used her wand to send it to the rubbish pile.

"I remember him now!" Ginny continued. "He used to always have a face like a smacked arse."

"Ginny!" Hermione admonished.

"Well he did," she huffed. "He always looked like he was moping about something." She held up what looked like a make-up travel case. "Keep, charity, or rubbish?"

"Charity," Hermione replied.

"Wouldn't you mope if your dad was a Death Eater?" Harry asked as he sent a pile of old newspapers to the rubbish pile.

"Or you were in Slytherin," Ginny added.

Hermione rolled her eyes at her two friends but couldn't stop from smiling slightly. "I guess … can you imagine growing up like that?"

Harry shuddered. "Yeah, imagine having to share a dorm with the biggest bunch of prats ever for seven years. No wonder he was like that."

"I don't think she means it like that, Harry," Ginny replied sarcastically.

"Well, I suppose that wouldn't help matters," Hermione commented.

"So, he lives in some big mansion just out of town … and he thought you were spying on him?" Ginny asked.

Hermione nodded. "Apparently."

"Suspicious much?" Harry asked.

"Tell me about it," Hermione replied and stretched. "He was just so … so …" She let out an annoyed huff when she couldn't finish her sentence.

"Rude? Arrogant?" Harry supplied. "Honestly, what did you expect?" he asked.

Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. It's actually the first time I've ever spoken to him," she replied.

"And hopefully the last time too, by the sounds of it," Ginny added with a chuckle.

XXX

_He was quickly walking down the long hall that led to the drawing room. The familiar portraits of his long-deceased relatives all blurred into a tunnel of sneering purebloods that looked down on him with disdain. He ignored them, though. He had to go see his father._

_Arriving at the door, he knocked and watched as the large, ornate, hardwood door creaked open. Stepping in, he stilled when he saw who was standing with his father._

"_Theodore, come in, we have a special guest," his father announced with what seemed like pride in his voice._

_Theo's eyes quickly flitted to the only other figure in the room, sitting in the winged high-back chair before the fireplace. Lord Voldemort._

"_Ah, young Master Theodore," Voldemort greeted in his smooth, high voice. "Such a pleasure to see you. You know the last time I saw you was when you were nothing but a baby." The words were a mockery of polite conversation and sounded nothing but empty and cold._

_Theo shifted on his feet and looked from his father to the Dark Lord, not really sure of what to say._

_After a few awkward moments of silence, Voldemort's non-existent eyebrows rose in amusement. "Do you have a mute for a son, Thaddeus?" he asked conversationally._

"_No, my Lord," he replied quickly before turning to Theo with a disappointed scowl. "Theodore, greet the Dark Lord, show him some respect."_

_Theo felt the breath leave his lungs as he turned to face the Dark Lord. "My apologies, my Lord. It is an honour to meet you," he said, giving what he hoped was a reverent enough bow._

_Lord Voldemort leaned back in the chair and stared at him intently. "Your boy is afraid of me, Thaddeus."_

_Theo watched from the corner of his eye as Thaddeus's cheeks brightened in embarrassment. He bit down on the inside of his cheek and looked down._

"_I assure you, my Lord, that Theodore is very shy—"_

"_Shut up, Thaddeus," the Dark Lord snapped before standing in a swirl of inky black robes and walking towards him. _

_Still looking down, Theo felt a jolt of fear pass through him when he realised that the Dark Lord was standing right behind him._

"_Your boy is right to fear me," he said in a low murmur, and Theo tried not to cringe when his felt the Dark Lord's cold breath brush against the back of his neck. "All it would take was one flick of my wand," Voldemort whispered. _

Theo's body flinched and his eyes snapped open. Taking in a greedy, deep breath his eyes flickered around his bedroom – not the drawing room, he assured himself. The relief that ran through him was palpable when he realised he had just had a dream. _More like a nightmare_, a part of him thought.

He sat up in bed, rubbed his eyes tiredly, and looked around his room slowly. Squeezing his eyes shut, he tried pushing Lord Voldemort's face out of his thoughts. Pushing the dream away, he stood and stretched, his lean form cracking from an uncomfortable night overall. Deciding to go get some breakfast, he ignored the fact it was the second nightmare he had in as many days. _Stress_ _will make us think the strangest things_, he mused to himself.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading! Thoughts so far? **

**RE Theo's appearance. In canon, he is described as "weedy", "stringy", and "rabbity". In other words, it sounds like a lot of boys I went to school with who had an awkward phase (haha). I've think the majority eventually grow out of this awkward stage and find their own way. They don't necessarily become conventionally handsome, but they have their own charm. He's an ordinary guy. Anyway, *unnecessary babbling over* you can picture him however you like, haha.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome to chapter three :) Thank you to all who reviewed. I know Theo/Hermione is a smallish ship, but the response has just been so lovely and encouraging so far. I have been really enjoying writing this, it's been relaxing. Writing Tomione can sometimes leave you a bit high strung :p Anyway, enough babble.**

**Song inspirations:**

**Talk Show Host - Radiohead**

**Buttons - Sia**

* * *

"You look like shit."

"Hello to you too, _Draco_," Theo muttered in annoyance as he slid into the booth at the back of the Leaky Cauldron, ignoring some of the curious glances given to their table.

Blaise Zabini's smirk was obvious behind the glass of firewhiskey he was sipping. "You do look a bit under the weather, Theo. Been sick?" he asked.

Theo hadn't been sick. Well, not really, anyway. He was just tired … It had been two weeks since he had signed the paperwork giving him control over his family fortune. Well, actually, it was looking less like a fortune and more like a pain the arse. He put his lack of sleep down to the stress of wondering how he would improve his financial situation. Curse his father and his spending. If Theo didn't act soon …

"Do you two know anything about the Muggle business world?" he asked suddenly.

Both of his friends eyed him strangely. Draco's lips curled downwards, as if he had just sucked on a particularly sour lemon, while Blaise's face remained artfully blank - the only giveaway of his curiosity was the slight raise of one eyebrow.

"Muggle business world?" Draco asked. "What would we know about that?"

Blaise turned to face the blond. "Don't play coy about muggle business, Malfoy. We all know how your family made their riches back in the day … " Blaise smirked at Draco's immediate sneer. "But, apparently their property market is booming," he then added, almost as an afterthought.

"What?" Draco asked incredulously. "How do _you _know about that?"

Blaise shrugged and looked away, swirling the liquor in his glass. "Know your enemy and all that."

Draco shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Why do you even want to know, Theo?"

Before Theo could even open his mouth, Blaise said, "This is about the Ministry compensation legislation, isn't it?"

Theo looked away from them and grit his teeth. "Yes."

"Fucking Ministry," Draco muttered. "Fucking hypocrites, the lot of them."

Theo knew that the Malfoy's had to pay compensation too. Though, the Malfoy fortune was much larger than that of the Nott's. It helped that the Malfoy's had turned at the last minute too. Unlike Theo's father, who had remained inconveniently devoted to the Dark Lord right until Azkaban. Theo recalled visiting the man a few weeks ago and shuddered at the memory of the stooped, elderly wizard still spouting hatred against muggles and mudbloods, still grieving the Dark Lord's loss.

He had been putting off seeing this Muggle business expert ever since it had been suggested by the Gringott's Goblin a couple of weeks ago. He'd ignored it at first, and then after he had spent more time looking at finances, he was hoping to get another opinion. He wasn't sure if Blaise and Draco were the two best people to ask … but Theo had thought it was worth a try.

"Look, my Mother has done business in the muggle world for years," Blaise said lightly, ignoring the looks of slight surprise from his two other friends. "It's not something we really like to talk about … but I suppose I could get you an appointment with her advisor."

"It's fine … Gringotts has a Liaison Officer who is more than suitable."

"I guarantee you our advisor would make much more … satisfying returns."

"I think Theo needs to remain as clean as possible, Blaise. It's alright for you, you don't have the Ministry breathing down your neck. One wrong move and-"

"Thank you," Theo cut across Draco with a look, before sighing tiredly. "But Draco's right. Sticking to Gringotts will at least keep everyone happy."

The table went a bit quiet, all three young men musing over the last two years. After the Ministry had taken such a long time to push Death Eater trials through, and now finally, it felt like things were getting back to a kind of normal. Then the Ministry announced they would be actively seeking compensation and damages from Death Eater families. It helped that most of these families were wealthy to begin with, and therefore the Ministry received quite the tidy sum to rebuild post war.

"Oh, you will never guess who came to the Manor today as part of the Auror inspection," Draco said.

"Potter?" Zabini asked.

"No, worse - if possible."

"I'm sure this will be good," Theo said.

"The Weasel," Draco said and sneered, as if saying the name was offensive in itself.

"The Weasel has become an Auror?" Theo asked, slightly surprised. "I thought he worked with his brother?"

"I knew," Blaise said. "Padma told me … and besides, it was in the Daily Prophet when he was accepted!" he added defensively at the look his two friends gave him.

"Well that must have been ever so fun," Theo drawled sarcastically, eyeing Draco.

Draco rolled his eyes. "It was. He was walking around like he was King Shit … hoping to find something to get us in trouble, no doubt. Well, fat chance for the Weasel. Father isn't taking any chances this time around and _everything_ has been sold-"

"Or moved to your French property," Zabini added.

"Regardless," Draco continued, giving Blaise a look that clearly said 'shut up'. "He was walking around like he was so fucking important. I can't stand him. It was hilarious when I made the oaf purposely trip over one of our persian hall runners. Of course, I made sure he couldn't blame it on me."

"Classic Weasel baiting is always fun," Theo said, smirking.

"Yeah, you should have seen his face when I politely enquired how things were with Granger."

Theo was immediately reminded of his run-in with the witch a fortnight earlier. He could admit their meeting had crossed his mind several times since.

"How did he react to that?" Blaise asked in almost a gleeful manner.

Draco smirked. "He turned redder than I thought was possible, even for _him_."

"Why?" Theo asked, genuinely confused.

"Theo, have you been living under a rock?" Blaise asked. "Truly. You must have been to miss that the Weasel was dumped by Granger."

"It was covered in the Prophet for weeks," Draco added. "Not that we need to know about, you know, real news or anything."

"What?" Theo _didn't_ actually know that. _Idiot_, he thought. That obviously explained why she had recently moved near him. He had just assumed that the Weasel had moved in with her.

"Padma told me that Granger was, get this, _bored _of the Weasel," Blaise added, looking pleased with revealing the information.

Blaise had recently proposed to Padma Patil, who he had only been dating for less than a year. But it didn't matter to anyone; their engagement was seen as a pureblood 'love match'. In other words, Blaise and Padma actually fell in love with one-another, a boon for both families.

"Pretty fucking pathetic if Granger finds you boring," Draco drawled.

"She's alright. Granger, that is," Blaise said. "I mean, I've had to socialise with her a bit … you know, because her and Padma work together now and they've become all friendly," he justified at the look Draco gave him.

"I spoke to her the other week," Theo said suddenly.

"What?" Blaise asked curiously.

Theo explained the run-in they had, careful to make himself sound less like a moron than how he actually felt about the whole situation. Especially the fact that he accused her of stalking him or something like that. Because when Theo had the chance to think realistically about the whole thing he came to the conclusion that as if Hermione Granger would stalk _him_, for Merlin's sake.

"So, you pretty much accused Granger of stalking you?" Draco said with a smirk, once Theo had finished his story.

_Damn Draco for always being able to read between the lines_, Theo thought in annoyance at his blond friend. Draco had always been far more perceptive than what many people assumed … it was the hallmark of a true bully, being able to find someone's weakness or insecurity and play on it so easily.

"Smooth, Theo, real smooth," Draco added with a snigger when Theo didn't respond to his first jibe.

"Well, there will be more chances to accuse Granger of stalking you, Theo," Blaise said in amusement. "Padma's going to ask her to be a bridesmaid for the wedding."

Theo groaned and took a large swig of the firewhiskey Draco had just pushed in front of him. _Fan-fucking-tastic_.

XXX

Hermione swiftly rounded a corner, ignoring her poor aching feet, and avoided looking at the giant clock near the main desk, as she knew it wasn't going to get her shift to end any sooner. It had been a ridiculously long day in the Janus Thickey Ward and Hermione honestly couldn't wait to end her stint there.

As part of her Healer training, Hermione was required to do rounds in various areas that required Healers. Whilst the Janus Thickey Ward mainly housed witches and wizards who had permanent spell damage, it also treated those with other mental health issues. Hermione was currently required to provide the correct medications to these people.

She looked up from the clipboard and smiled at the few people surrounding the main desk, picking up the conversation easily as she approached.

"Can I go yet? It's been half an hour," said a snooty voice Hermione recognised as Astoria Greengrass, a patient being treated for an eating disorder, who was required to sit at the main desk after each meal, under the watch of the Healers and Nurses.

"It's only been twenty minutes, Astoria, and you know it," Padma Patil replied.

Astoria huffed and muttered to herself in annoyance as her attention went back the Witch Weekly magazine she had been perusing.

"Hey, Padma," Hermione greeted the other Healer before turning her attention to their patient. "Astoria."

"Granger," Astoria muttered whilst rolling her eyes and turning back to her magazine.

Hermione's eyebrows rose in surprise at the surly greeting. Astoria was normally quite friendly towards her. Her gaze went to Padma who simply mouthed 'bad day' at her. Hermione gave a small nod in understanding.

"Hey, before we get run off our feet again, I have something to ask of you," Padma said as she stepped away from the desk. "Sorry, it's such a tacky way of asking, but we're both busy, so-"

"Padma, what is it?" Hermione cut in, urging the other witch to get to the point.

"Would you do me the honour of being one of my bridesmaids?" she asked.

Hermione was shocked. She had become very close to Padma since they had finished Hogwarts, and it was true that Hermione now considered her, along with Ginny, as one of her closest girlfriends. But she was still surprised that Padma would ask such a thing of her.

"Are you sure?" Hermione spluttered out. "I mean, what about-"

"Hermione, you've been such a wonderful friend, don't you dare question why I would ask you over others," Padma interrupted quickly.

A bright smile spread across Hermione's face. "Yes! I mean, of course, I would love to."

Padma gave a brilliant smile in return and pulled Hermione in for a surprise hug. "Oh, thank you, Hermione! I'm so pleased you said yes!"

"Thank you for asking me," Hermione replied.

"Oh, it's no problem! The wedding is still six months away, but I've still got a fair bit to plan - you know how it is with work and all," she prattled on until her wand buzzed. "Ah, crap," she muttered. "That's my alarm, I have to go and check on Lockhart." She made a face at that, causing Hermione to snort.

"No worries," Hermione replied, still smiling.

"Let's catch up for coffee tomorrow, yeah? I know we're on the same shift," Padma said as she began walking down the hall.

"Okay, see you!" Hermione called out after her friend before heading back to the main desk smiling.

As she got back to the desk however, Astoria and the other nurses quickly stopped talking and Astoria pushed the Witch Weekly they were reading out of Hermione's sight. Hermione frowned at them in confusion. If she didn't know any better, she'd believe they were trying to hide something.

"Er, hi, Granger," Astoria greeted somewhat awkwardly. "I think my time's up, wouldn't you say? Besides, 'Passions at Moonlight' is about to start on the Wireless and it's the episode where I think Ricardo will finally leave that hussy, Magdalena …"

"What were you all just reading?" Hermione asked, ignoring Astoria's rambling.

"Oh, this? Nothing … just that old bint Skeeter … you know how ridiculous she is."

Hermione looked between the three women in front of her. "What exactly is she saying this time?" Hermione asked, though she had a feeling she didn't really want to know.

"Seriously, it's nothing-"

"Just show me the article," Hermione said impatiently.

Astoria slowly picked up the magazine and looked at Hermione. "Okay, but don't blame us …" she said as she handed Hermione the magazine.

Hermione rolled her eyes and snatched the magazine from the other girl. "Why would I …" But she trailed off, because there in big bold letters was something that left her utterly speechless...

"**Hit by love bludger? Ron Weasley cosy with ex-flame at Chudley match"**

There, underneath the headline was a rather large image of a laughing Ron and a very smug looking Lavender Brown holding hands at the latest Chudley Cannons Quidditch match.

"I'm so sorry-"

"It's fine," Hermione snapped over Astoria in a high pitched voice. "Really … it's fine," she repeated in a much more polite and calm manner. "I broke up with him … Ronald is free to date whomever he wishes. Now, if you all would excuse me," Hermione said with a smile that was far too bright. "I have patients to check on."

She turned her back on the three other women and quickly began walking down the hall, magazine still tightly clutched in her hand, ignoring the tears that had uncontrollably built up. She refused to break down at work because of Ronald Weasley and Lavender _bloody _Brown. Besides, she broke up with him … why, then, would she even get upset about him going on what looked like a date?

Sniffing rather loudly and fastening her pace, Hermione straightened her shoulders and mentally composed herself. Walking past the nearest bin, she didn't even look back as she threw the magazine straight in it, ignoring the smiling faces of her ex-fiance and former classmate.

XXX

_He was kneeling before the Dark Lord, on a stone floor, surrounded by masked Death Eaters. Well, all were masked, except his father, who stood off to Theo's right, looking as though Christmas had come early._

"_Theodore Nott," Voldemort said in a low, smooth voice. "Your father tells me you wish to join us?"_

_Theo swallowed thickly. No! he didn't want to become a Death Eater! What was his father doing?_

_Lord Voldemort was suddenly moving towards him, he was so swift and fluid that Theo briefly wondered if he was actually flying. Before he could think anymore on the topic, the Dark Lord was standing right in front of him and had managed to grab his left arm._

"_Well, Theodore, is your father telling the truth?" the Dark Lord asked._

"_I …" But the words died on Theo's mouth as he stared at his forearm, encased in Voldemort's long fingers, that famous wand digging into his pale skin. _

_The Death Eaters surrounding them chuckled at Theo's lack of response. _

"_He does, my Lord, he does," Thaddeus Nott commented._

_Lord Voldemort smirked and Theo felt the tip of his wand dig further into his arm._

_Theo looked up at the Dark Lord and was suddenly caught in his blood red gaze. He could see his lips moving, chanting, but it was like his ears were blocked. Then it hit. Pain so intense that Theo screamed, screamed until his throat felt raw. _

_His eyes were unable to look away from the Dark Lord, yet everything else seemed to blur around him, like he was caught in a tunnel and moving forth so rapidly that he could not control or feel anything. Except for his arm, which felt like it was be slowly sliced apart. _

Theo jolted awake, his breathing harsh, and looked down frantically at his pyjama covered left arm and let out a small breath of relief when he realised it was just another nightmare. _Of course he'd never got the Dark Mark_. The Dark Lord had been 'too busy' leading up to the Battle of Hogwarts, much to his father's dismay, and thankfully Potter had defeated Lord Voldemort before Theo would have been forced onto the podium to pledge his undying loyalty.

He slowly sat up and let out a groan as he checked the clock and realised it was only four in the morning.

"_Too early_," he muttered to himself as he fell back down on the bed.

Laying there with nothing to do but think, he couldn't get over how real that nightmare seemed. _The pain had felt real_, he thought, as he absentmindedly ran a hand over the area where the Dark Mark would have gone. He swore he could still feel the burn of it … but put it down to the vividness of the nightmare.

Turning to his side and readjusting his pillow, Theo closed his eyes and attempted to fall back asleep. But his mind was reeling, and he knew in his gut that it would be impossible to sleep now.

He couldn't understand what had triggered these nightmares. During, and after, the war he had been affected by them. But they were never as vivid, or occuring as often as they were now. He racked his brain to recall if anything had happened recently, but he couldn't think of anything. He had been so busy with taking over the family vaults that he hadn't had time to take in much else.

Sighing, he decided to get up. It would be dawn soon, and maybe he'd sign off that paperwork early and get a chance to go out on his broom. Then he'd head into Diagon Alley and stock up on Dreamless Sleep potion, because what he really needed was a good night's sleep.

"Mippy!" he called grumpily, and started getting ready for the day ahead.

XXX

**A/N: Thanks for reading! **

**There will be a fair bit of interaction between the Theo and Hermione next chapter, I promise. Just needed to do a bit of scene setting after the initial meet in this chapter :) **

**Cheers **

**Shan**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author Note: **New chapter, woohoo! I hope you all enjoy it. Thanks for reading :)

* * *

Theo Apparated directly into a side street that placed him near Slug and Jiggers Apothecary. Straightening his robes, he walked out into the busy street, weaving through the usual crowds.

It was a Saturday, so the Alley was extra busy. Theo dodged many young families, obviously out on their regular shopping trips, as well as many other individuals who had regular jobs and needed to run their errands outside of weekdays.

He sighed in annoyance at having to constantly dodge uncoordinated children and their equally harried parents. His shoulders sagged in relief when he finally arrived at the Apothecary, the bell over the door softly jingling as he stepped through the entrance into the almost empty shop.

He had come to buy the ingredients for Dreamless Sleep Potion, as he had already tried plain old Sleeping Draught a couple of nights ago, thinking that a nice heavy sleep would do the trick. Unfortunately, the nightmares were even stranger and he had found it more difficult to wake up from them. He knew, however, that a Dreamless Sleep Potion would be a better answer. He really needed a good nights sleep soon, the fatigue was really starting to get to him.

He turned a corner without looking and walked straight into someone. "Shit," he muttered, and grimaced in pain, his left arm had hit whoever he had walked into and was now burning.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," came a feminine voice from somewhere beneath him. He looked down and internally groaned at the familiar mop of bushy brown hair that came into view.

He had walked into Hermione Granger. Terrific. Just what he wanted. A slight tinge of guilt travelled through him because she had actually been knocked right over and was currently awkwardly situated on the floor. She still wasn't looking at his face, as she had a multitude of shopping bags she was trying to get under control while she continued to mutter some kind of rambling apology.

"- wasn't watching where I was going. I'm really sorry …" she said, immediately trailing off when she looked up and made eye contact with him. "Nott," she greeted after blinking in surprise.

"Granger." Theo nodded at her.

She remained in her awkward sitting position on the ground, clutching at her multitude of bags. Theo sighed in annoyance and reluctantly held out his (unhurt) arm to help her up. She stared at it rather dumbly before making eye contact with him, and then turning to look at his (now awkward) outstretched hand.

Before Theo could tisk in annoyance at the muggleborn witch, she finally took the hint and reached out and grabbed his hand. He pulled her up easily, startled at how light she actually was - maybe hair wasn't that heavy afterall - and how warm her rather small hand felt clasped in his.

"Er, sorry, Nott, I wasn't watching where I was going," she apologised, looking down and to the side, so he couldn't see her expression clearly.

"Well, you should apologise, I think you hit my arm quite hard. Watch where you're walking next time," he replied haughtily, thoroughly enjoying calling the know-it-all out.

Her head snapped upwards in a flash at his rather insensitive words. Theo continued to smirk. What? Did she actually expect him to apologise as well? As if it would be some kind of mutual apology convention?

_Hah, unlikely_.

Her apologetic expression quickly morphed into a scowl. "But you … you," she began, obviously annoyed that he wouldn't meet her halfway. "Well, have it your way, Nott. By the way, I would very much appreciate it if you let go of me immediately," she snipped.

Theo clenched his jaw in annoyance. He didn't realise he was still holding onto her. _Damn_, he thought as his hand quickly dropped away from her arm and frowned at the smug look she gave him.

"Well, Nott, again, I would like to say it's been enjoyable seeing you, but that would be a lie," she snapped and stomped off in a whirl of robes, shopping bags, and bushy hair.

Theo scoffed and rolled his eyes. It felt like Granger had been popping up all over the place, whether it was physically or via general conversation. Firstly, she had moved to the village near his Manor, though he could handle that, it's not like he ever visited the muggle village much anyway. Secondly, there was Blaise's wedding. He was going to be part of the wedding party, as was Granger. He certainly hoped Blaise and Padma didn't expect them all to work together or something … that would be disastrous. And now, he was seeing her on his regular shopping trips … After two years of barely hearing anything about her, it felt like she was everywhere now.

He was so lost in his thoughts he didn't even notice until it was too late that the very same witch who was occupying them just happened to be standing at the same ingredients area he needed to access.

"What is it now?" she asked in agitation when she turned to see him approaching her.

Theo's lips thinned in annoyance. "I need to buy some Nightmare Vine," he snapped, nodding at the dried plant on the shelf behind her.

"Hmph," she muttered in annoyance and stepped over slightly so Theo could reach the ingredient.

Theo internally rolled his eyes at her before stepping forward and reaching for the Vine. As he was selecting what he wanted, her nagging voice interrupted his attempt at ignoring her.

"The Ministry regulations say that you're only allowed to buy five ten centimetre pieces of Nightmare Vine per week," she lectured.

Theo looked down at the six pieces he had accidentally picked up. _Really, now_! He didn't need to be told the rules, he knew them! It was just a simple mistake. He groaned and rolled his eyes as he turned to look at her smug, know-it-all expression.

"I know that," he snapped.

Granger raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips, before crossing her arms. "Just reminding you incase you forgot."

"Ever heard of a mistake, Granger?" he drawled, before taking one of the pieces and putting it back on the shelf.

"I guess. I'm sure you'd be more well-acquainted than me, though," she retorted.

He was about to say something incredibly derogatory and offensive to the uptight little bint until he noticed how her eyes travelled to his arm and grew wide. His eyes followed hers, and he couldn't hide the shock either. His robe had slipped down on his left arm, revealing quite an obvious red burn mark. _The nightmare_, he remembered suddenly.

"That's quite a burn," she commented, eyeing it and almost looking concerned.

Theo quickly dropped his arm, allowing the fabric to cover it again. He was confused, and wasn't sure what to think or say at this point in time.

"The Nightmare Vine isn't going to help with that," she added.

Theo was still too stunned by the mark on his arm to really be too peeved by how nosy she was currently being. "I know," he replied slowly. "That's for something else."

"Oh," she replied. "Well, I know they sell burn-healing paste over the counter here, so that would be your best bet."

"Right," he replied quietly, glancing at his arm and then looking back at the witch standing next to him, who was eyeing him strangely.

_I'd be eyeing me strangely too_, he thought, trying to pull himself together.

"Are you okay, Nott?" she finally asked.

Theo stopped his thinking, his attention snapping back to her again. Here he was, acting like a loon in front of Hermione Granger … yet again. This had to stop.

"I'm fine," he snapped, sounding more abrupt than what he really meant to be. "Merlin, Granger, do you always feel the need to be in everyone's business?" he sneered. Theo knew he was being harsh on purpose, but he was feeling stressed and cornered and just wanted her to go away and leave him to work out how a burn appeared in the same area he recently had a terrible nightmare about.

Her eyes flashed in anger and her mouth pursed. He was even sure he saw her hair crackle slightly.

"Well, excuse me, Nott," she said, her voice like acid. "It's actually my role as a Healer to show a duty of care towards _everyone_! Even complete tossers like yourself!"

It was true, her hair was crackling.

"Well, Granger, don't bother," he snapped back. "I have everything under control, so take the hint and get lost."

"Ha! In case you didn't notice, this is a public place so you can't tell me to go away! But your mere presence is so disgusting I don't want to stay here anymore!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!" she repeated and before he knew it, she had already stormed off.

Theo stood there for a few seconds, his heart beating rapidly and his breathing shallow. He quickly pulled the sleeve of his robe back up again and stared at the burn mark. _How?_ he wondered. A terrible feeling caused his stomach to drop and roll, so he lowered the sleeve, not wanting to look at it any more, for now. A small part of him knew that whatever this was, it wasn't good.

XXX

"And then he had the audacity to tell me to 'get lost'!" Hermione ranted.

It was later that night, and both Hermione and Padma were stuck on shift together until midnight. Both had managed to wrangle a coffee break and were currently refuelling to make it through the next couple of hours.

"Well, I don't really know what to say," Padma replied, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Besides the fact that he is arrogant, thoughtless, and possibly one of the rudest people I have ever had the displeasure of meeting?"

"Yes, it was very rude of him," Padma agreed. "I must say, you certainly know how bring it out of him. Theodore is normally so reserved and quiet … I'd never expect him to have such an outburst."

"Well, believe it," Hermione replied. "Slytherins …" she muttered angrily.

"Hey! I happen to be marrying a Slytherin," Padma replied with a laugh.

"You know what I mean," Hermione replied, rolling her eyes. "Blaise seems to be the only decent one out of the lot of them."

"He is _now_. At Hogwarts he was just as much of a prat as the rest of them," Padma said. "But yes, he did have to do some growing up before I'd even consider going on a date with him." She nodded to herself with a rather pleased expression on her face.

"Well, it goes to show that some people can grow up for the better, then there are others …" Hermione shuddered.

"You do realise he is going to be part of the wedding party?"

Hermione dropped copy of the Daily Prophet she had been casually reading. "What? No!"

"Yes … He's one of Blaise's closest friends."

"Urgh, please don't partner me with him, Padma!"

Padma laughed. "Well, your other choices are Malfoy or Adrian Pucey, so …"

"_Malfoy?!_" Hermione blanched, completely ignoring the other boy … she couldn't even recall him from school anyway.

"Hey! You already agreed to be a bridesmaid, you cannot back out now!" Padma said, before cracking up in laughter at Hermione's stricken expression.

"But-"

"No backing out," she said firmly before looking at her watch. "Now, break's up. I hate to love you and leave you …"

"After you shared such wonderful news, why would you ever want to leave?" Hermione said sarcastically, eyebrow raised at her friend.

"It'll be fine, Hermione! And don't worry, I'll pair Pavarti up with Malfoy."

"At this stage, I don't know who is worse out of the two," Hermione muttered angrily.

"It'll be fine!" she repeated. "Don't worry, I won't leave you alone with the big, bad Slytherins … too much," she sniggered as she got up from her seat and smoothed her Healer robes down.

Hermione huffed, and ignored Padma's laughter and farewell. Deciding she needed to get back to her own shift, she stood up and left the small break room alone.

Just what had she got herself into? Of course with Padma marrying Blaise Zabini there would be a disgustingly high number of Slytherins involved in her wedding. Hermione had just been so caught up in the excitement of being asked to be a bridesmaid that she didn't stop to consider what it might involve … or rather, _who_ it would involve.

Nott _and _Malfoy? _Yuck!_

Wait, maybe she could get paired up with that Pucey bloke that Padma had mentioned? She couldn't recall him at all, but surely anyone was better than Nott at this stage. Yes, the next time she spoke to Padma, she would ask - no _beg_ - to be paired with this other guy.

* * *

**Author Note:** Okay, so I tried looking up the ingredients for the Dreamless Sleep Potion, but alas, no luck on any of the usual HP sources. I did however, in my google adventures, see that World of Warcraft has a similar potion. Therefore, the Nightmare Vine has been borrowed from the WoW universe, so all credits and much appreciation to them.

What do you think about Theo's burn? And poor Hermione! What an awful wedding party to be a part of! Haha, sometimes I am just too mean to her ;P

I've loved writing this so far, and am so grateful for the wonderful feedback I've received ^^ So thank you :)

Thanks for reading! xo


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